Mezze Place

That desert gets 5 stars even after its gone. So sad that this amazing place closed down. The food was top notch. It was a go to place for me and my wife.

Mezze place was one of my all time favorite places to dine. I consistantly recommended it to friends and would always bring fanily there to enjoy a wonderful culinary experience. I truly do hope this resturant reopens again. The service was excellent but above all tge food was exquisite! Thank you mezze place, i wont forget you.

I am so sad that this place closed :(
I just saw that I never finished this review and posted it last year…
The best falafel I’ve ever had! They use fresh chickpeas and you taste all of the ingredients and they have a perfect crunch at the end. Also great chopped salad, grilled octopus – the first time we went our waiter told us it was the best in town and as someone that lives in Astoria and loves me some grilled octopus we agreed with him! A lovely little place with delicious vegetarian, vegan and meat selections that would please any palate!

Mezze Place, a gem that succeeded another in Mundo (
) seems to have fallen from graces of the hood. Their closing is sure to disappoint many, especially since it was just getting started.
It was and is small. Owners were Yosef and Lana were passionate owners and cared for the quality of the food and dining experience. After coming here for small dinners, take out times, and fabulous delivery experiences, I couldn’t help but feel passionate for everything they had as well. It was one of the more off the beaten path, date friendly spots too hard to ignore.
I will miss their tasty lentil koftes, the incredibly creamy hummus, the lamb merguez, and their hearty tagine. The labaneh rivaled any Mediterranean spot in the borough and was as fresh as they come. Even the brunch hour was a fun time to go, with short rib benedicts and a hell of a shashuka that would make any food lover salivate.
No matter how well a business is doing, it’s never a guarantee they’ll be around for long. Mezze Place, much like Mundo, wasn’t around long enough. Here’s hoping they pop up somewhere else nearby, they were certainly ahead of their game.

This is my favorite restaurant in Astoria. There are so many vegetarian options and I have never had something I do not like! I’m obsessed with the hummus! I love the people who work here too they are always so sweet and easy going.
Go here! You won’t regret it.

I have tried most of the vegetarian options of their menu and they are all amazing! It is my favorite place in Astoria (maybe even the whole NYC), and the best Mediterranean food! They have a special butternut squash dish with black rice that is delicious! Also, if you go there, ask for the traditional dessert they’ve got, I forgot the name but it’s something with ice cream and dates syrup… It’s out of this world!!!

I went here with a group of 6 friends for Saturday night dinner. It was pretty empty when we came in, so we were all seated right away. It’s a small space, but beautifully decorated with a huge mural of the Mediterranean sea on the wall.
The service was incredible — they really explain the menu, both what’s on it, what’s on special, and HOW they make it (nice touch!). Everything sounded so amazing, I had a hard time choosing! Eventually, we decided to share the three-​dip appetizer (hummus, baba ganoush, and a spicy feta). All three were outstanding and the fresh warm pita was to die for. They also had gluten-​free bread for our gluten sensitive friend in the group.
I ordered the vegetable shawarma wrap, which was amazing. I also sampled a friend’s fried butternut squash (special) and it was insane. So. Good.
I can’t wait to go back and try the rest of their menu!

I was very impressed with this restaurant. It was just around the corner form my friend’s apartment and we had never been there. Very cozy atmosphere, the staff were very attentive and friendly, and very knowledgable about the menu, especially the specials that they were serving.
I had the tuna special. It was delicious. It was over grilled veggies, and it was soo good. My friends and I shared a plate of hummus and pita… best hummus I have EVER had! It was so creamy and delicious!
I had the rice pudding for dessert… amazing! there was a passionfruit reduction drizzled on top, and it was served warm in a small mason jar. UNBELIEVABLE! I was very impressed by this place. I LOVE IT!

An outstanding meal thanks to the Unilocal App. We were entertaining and had different palates to please – one of which is vegetarian. Mezze Place does an amazing job of offering a dietarily-​agnostic menu tailored to carnivores, veggie-​heads, and vegans alike. The owners are Israeli, and they are really elevating indigenous dishes to new heights, while paying homage to other Middle Eastern cuisines.
I was tempted by several dishes but tried the Lamb Sania: a «Jericho-​style» moussaka with ground lamb, eggplant, fresh tomato, potato, and ras-​el-​hanout North African spices topped with Nazareth tahini and pine nuts. The description alone makes me want to get on a boat and sail eastward. IT was delicious, and so was everything our party ordered.
The wine list has several options, all ridiculously affordable. There are also a few choice beers. I couldn’t find anything wrong with the place. Did I mention you can sit outside, and there was no line on Saturday night? Let’s hope this place sticks around and keeps up the great work.

Very memorable dinner experience for my mom’s birthday. We were all shocked at the creativity and culture put into each Mediterranean themed dish. Yoad, the owner and our waiter was super cool and patient with us, making some great recommendation. He let us know that the head chef is from Barbounia in the Manhattan which further peaked our interest while waiting for our appetizers.
Our recs for you:
Lamb meatballs
Braised Lamb Shank
Israeli inspired moussaka
Halvah ice cream dessert — DO NOT MISS THIS!
Mint tea
We honestly cannot wait to come back and bring friends to try other dishes.

My gentleman companion and I have eaten here many times (sometimes as often as once a week for a few weeks consecutively) — even when it was Mundo Café, and I never thought that I would have to give it anything less than 4 – 5 stars. However, after tonight, I don’t think we will be returning anytime soon… perhaps we will wait a while in the hope that the pregnant server lady comes back after her maternity leave. The combination of subpar food and openly disinterested (at best) and contemptuous (at worst) service led me to post this review as soon as I got home.
When the pregnant lady was still working there, we never had any problems nor did we feel unwelcome. She was extremely amiable, and it seemed genuinely so. The last few times we went, she wasn’t there anymore and the male server was polite and efficient (but definitely not as warm as her). That’s fine. That’s all I expect from a server. But tonight, we noticed how palpably different he treated the other tables; he stopped by their tables several times to check on them, was friendlier, etc. (The place wasn’t packed but there were maybe 4 – 5 other tables.) He did check on us once as he was on his way to another table and said, «Oh I haven’t checked on you yet… are you happy?» To which my companion paused for a bit (as we have been discussing how the food was off tonight and seemed to have been reheated) and tentatively said, «It’s okay…» The server rushed off.
The other server there tonight — a female one — didn’t bother to mask her disdain for us when bringing us the food/​dessert menu, taking our plates, etc. Her attitude with the other tables was a stark contrast. She did not want us there.
The only reason we could think of for this was the fact that my companion is heavily tattooed. I am assuming they had a preconceived notion of what that would mean (unruly behavior? loud, salty language? drunkenness?) and ran with it, despite us being regulars. And perhaps we didn’t fit into the mold of their desired client demographic? In any case, we don’t drink, order a good amount of food and are courteous and good tippers and don’t linger. Really, we are amazing patrons!
Onto the food tonight. They further snubbed us by denying us their complimentary warm, fluffy pitas and olive tapenade! Everyone else got theirs. Not us. We decided to let it go and not make a big deal. But this makes me upset. I love bread. (See also, my review on El Almacen — no free bread for us either!)
When we finally got our entrees (there was a long wait between the appetizer/​small mezze and the entrees), I was even more upset. I had been thinking about their yummy vegetable schwarma wrap all day; I had it a couple of times before and it was delicious. Today’s…not so much. It was a sad, cold, hard, chewy wrap. The wrap itself was definitely from the day before, as it was hard and cold. The contents were cold and sad and flavorless. My companion got their butternut squash special, which was also a disappointment. It also came out lukewarm, bordering on cold, and lacking flavor.
To top it all off, we watched them give another table a free sundae at the end of their meal! It made it all the more obvious that they just really did not want us there… discriminating my companion due to the color on his skin. Oh well.

Things to love about this place:
— An appealing menu of Middle Eastern food, from hummus and labaneh, to falafel, to shakshooka and tagine, to more fusion-​y, foodie specials.
— Sidewalk seating and an open storefront so that the whole place feels outdoorsy.
— Friendly, thoughtful service. (One example: when they list their specials, they tell you the price. I always like when restaurants do this, I feel like it’s a signifier of care or thoughtfulness.)
— Many vegetarian and vegan options.
— For dessert: SILAN! One of my favorites, and you don’t see it on menus much. The ingredient list says it all: rice crispies, pistachios, vanilla ice cream, and shredded halva, drizzled with date nectar/​honey.
Specific food notes:
— I had a bite of a table-mate’s falafel appetizer: very good. Good enough to call out. Great flavor, with just the right crispiness. I wouldn’t mind getting two of these appetizers (4 falafels each) and some hummus and calling it a meal.
— I had a dinner special: a pita layered over with hummus, zaatar, some grilled veggies, and seared tuna. Something about the flavors and textures didn’t come together as well as it should have but I still enjoyed it.
— Did I mention the silan? Yes, yes I did. Allow me to mention it again: if they’re offering this, you’re a fool to order something else.

Dear Mezze, I am so sorry it’s taken me so long to write. You see, I’ve been rather busy, but at least I made good to come by for one last visit before I moved out of the neighborhood, right? I’ve enjoyed your company, first as Mundo, then as a guest of an Elite event, and each time I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with you. You are so hospitable and gracious!
This particular time, I ordered the dip trio (Hummus, spicy feta, eggplant), the falafel, skirt steak, sausages, and the peach juice. I’ve also tried the zucchini fritters and the red sonya, which are the bomb. Everything I had here was delicious and well made. On top of it, service is sweet and they remember their regulars. They also have outside seating if the weather is cooperative.
Mezze is especially kind to vegans, vegetarians and celiacs, as the menu is clearly labeled and everything is still prepared freshly, quickly, and with love. I especially recommend the smaller plates — they’re more fun to share and sample, and I think they’re better then the entrees.

Great Mediterranean spot with small and big plates. The menu is clearly marked as to vegetarian and vegan items. There was this croquette that was phenomenal, though I was disappointed with the artichoke mezze and thought the vegetable tagine needed more sauce and had an overwhelming amount of root veggies and couscous.
I liked the vibe and will definitely want to try more items next time, but I sadly miss the old Mundo Café still very much.

My friend was having a birthday dinner and she’s vegan so it makes sense we ate here at Mezze Place. The highlight of the night was the spreads. I can’t name all of them– they all look like hummus but taste ridiculously different in a good way! The lebenah spread was my fave. The spreads came with fresh warm pitas and it was divine. The service was good, the owners care about the shop and were attentive without being overbearing. I also ordered the Vegetarian Shawarma but it tasted too healthy and my meat eating self could not adapt quickly enough. I left most of it untouched but not the fries!
Don’t get me wrong– there are meat options. But I felt adventurous and went the Vegetarian route– I thought maybe I’m not Vegetarian because I haven’t seen the light? Nah son, Meat Lover til I die. Mezze Place is still cool though.

love this place! The food is delicious – best hummus I’ve ever had.
Generous portions, very friendly service, delicious and fresh food, convenient location.
Definitely get the 5 spreads – all delicious and very generous portions! Especially the spicy feta (and I usually don’t even like feta that much) and hummus. They give you a small bowl of each instead of a small scoop on a plate like most places. Filled my bf and I up so much we only took a few bites of our entrees (and we’re big eaters!)
As someone mentioned, yes the bread is small… but its warm, fresh, and FREE – no extra charge if you ask for more so nothing to complain about! :) Only reason it gets 4 stars for now is a.) I want to see if the service /​quality is consistent b.) the dessert wasn’t all that memorable or great… actually forgot what I had already.

Quick you’re out in Astoria and you find out your date is a hardcore vegan what do you do? What do you do? Simple I just type vegan into my search of the area using Unilocal… duh.
Mezze is a nice beautiful restaurant, with a super friendly and helpful staff. I was hoping they would have dishes that would appease both of us and they did. Hummus is splendid but I did find it odd they brought out the pita bread in a brown bag. The marseille cigars were short ribs stuffed into small wraps (shaped like cigars) with mushrooms and herbs. It was amazing but not such a large portion. The Moroccan Vegetable Tagine is a much larger portion of every vegetable under the sun served with some couscous. That dish was too much for the vegan, luckily I am a garbage disposal and assisted in the matter.
They also serve Franziskaner Hefe-​Weissbier. A great beer to go down with a good meal.
Mezze Place is a great option if you are with someone who refuses to eat tasty tasty animals or their byproducts.

Mmmmmmm.
We were originally going to cook for ourselves in an effort to avoid Valentine’s Day crowds. Not feeling up to cooking after all, we decided to try Mezze Place — and it’s such a shame that I didn’t know about this restaurant sooner. So many vegetarian and vegan options!
The décor is very nice, but due to the size of the space, the seating arrangement isn’t so great. They have tables that are close together and, if you sit against the wall, you’re on the same bench as everyone else. This kept moving as the other people moved.
That said, the food was absolutely delicious.
We had the zucchini croquettes, the green tahini, the vegetable tagine… and my guy had the sausage special (chicken olive?). The tahini was just a bit lacking in flavor but was very smooth and still tasty; the croquettes were unique and had a tangy yogurt sauce that went well with them; and the tagine… oh the tagine.
Carrots, brussels sprouts, potatoes, squash, and couscous — and a large amount of food for us to share, too. The warmed mini-​pitas to dip in the tahini were a nice touch as well, and a refreshing change from small and cold triangles of dough in other restaurants.
I am so very happy that I finally went here! Next time we’ll go on a night that isn’t so busy.

Can’t find a place to take a date?
Done. Mezze Place’s cozy interior while a smaller said venue but it adds in a Mediterranean flair that is sure to impress your lady companion
The food was very good. I was surprised actually before even though I am a FOODIE Mediterranean foods can either be a hit or miss with me.
Must tries — Red Lentil Kofte (baby Mediterranean spring rolls, yes), Chicken Sausage (who doesn’t love chicken on a stick, chicken anything really), and Lamb Sausage (perhaps one of the better lambs I’ve had in recent memory INCLUDING those infamous Halal truck guys).
Things to note —
1) You should be somewhat familiar with Mediterranean geography or not but it helps especially there is a GIANT MAP inside this restaurant and you can impress your date by playing the «guess how many cities I can name without glancing at the map» game. You should play this drunk.
2) The bathroom is SUPER SMALL. Small as in you have to really learn how to maneuver your body inside so that you don’t break your shins on the porcelain toilet bowl walking in.
3) This is a GREAT area to walk that food off for that romantic setting.

I love that the owner described this place as «Mezzeterranean» — there’s a beautiful, vibrant, gigantic chalk mural on the wall to remind guests that the Mediterranean extends far beyond the countries to which we so often narrow it…
Drawing from several cultures, the team has created an eclectic, thoughtful menu with some delicious twists on mezze favorites. Tabouli is studded with ruby pomegranate seeds that explode in your mouth. Red lentil kofte are imprinted with a tiny well of pomegranate purée, a sweet and tart compliment to the potato and crunchy lentil blend. The shakshuka is killer, a sizzling skillet of eggs poached in an herbed paprika tomato sauce.
With a nice wine selection and intimate dining room, it’s a perfect place to savor some flavorful creations that are fresh and health-​conscious.